D.C. Athletes Donate, Raise Money for Harvey Relief

WASHINGTON — Hurricane Harvey is already the rainiest tropical cyclone in U.S. history, dumping nearly 52 inches of rain as of 4 p.m. on Tuesday. In its aftermath, Washington, D.C., professional athletes are vowing to be there to bail out the victims of the storm and floods.

The biggest effort, so far, comes from Wizards John Wall and Bradley Beal, who started a group text with teammates and raised more than $250,000 as of Monday.

The Washington Post reports that Markieff Morris and Otto Porter Jr. set the tone on donations. Team owner Ted Leonsis, President Ernie Grunfeld and Coach Scott Brooks separately donated to the American Red Cross. The MSE Foundation, which is the umbrella charitable organization for Leonsis-owned teams, also donated to the players’ efforts.

“John and Brad put together a group text and wanted to help out the people in Houston, and I think everybody is jumping on board,” Brooks told the Post on Monday. “It’s exciting. I’m pretty proud of them to spearhead the group and help out the people in Texas.”

Other D.C. players, like the Nationals’ Anthony Rendon and Matt Albers, are from Houston and have set up a charity page to collect money from fans, which will be donated directly to the Houston Food Bank.

Rendon even broke his long-standing Twitter silence to spread the good news:

As of 9:30 p.m., the duo had raised $26,248 from 188 donors, and are well on their way to reaching the $40,000 goal.

Meanwhile, backup Redskins quarterback and Texas native Colt McCoy turned over his boat to friends and donated money to several Houston charities, earmarked for more boats that can be used to assist with rescues and supply distribution.

According to Redskins.com, McCoy lent his 16-foot skiff to friends, including former Texas football teammates, to help with evacuations.

“That’s the least I can do from here,” McCoy told the media. “It’s tough. I don’t have a family in Houston, but everybody in America knows somebody from Houston — there’s six million people there. It certainly has affected a lot of my friends and family. I’m just trying to do the things that I can from up here to help out.

“What it sounds like to me is the more that they can give the better, so we’re giving funds to buy a few more boats. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy just something they can move around in.”

The team also put out a video getting thought, prayers and sympathies from a swath of the roster. While some players have a connection to Texas, some are just compassionate human beings: